Cooking with Fresh Grape Vine
Leaves
Stuffed
grape leaves --- also known as dolmas or dolmades, or
dawaly --- are so delicate and delicious! Every Middle Eastern country has its own
variations of these rice-stuffed rolls. Lebanese
cooks may use a little tomato in their recipes, but elsewhere it is more
traditional not to overwhelm their subtle flavor with garlic, tomato, vinegar
or other strong flavors.
This
guideline will show you how to select and prepare either fresh or regular
preserved grape leaves with a variety of fillings and sauces. Cooking methods include oven, steaming, or
microwave.
Using
bottled/preserved leaves
* Quality and size vary, try several
brands.
* Leaves should be completely covered by
brine, check the jar before you buy.
* Leaves keep their color best if stored in
a dark cupboard.
* 16 ounce jar usually contains about 60
usable leaves in 3 bundles.
* Even commercially prepared leaves need to
be blanched and chilled before
use or they are too salty and strong-flavored.
Selecting
fresh leaves
Now, I
knew those Greek grandmothers did not buy their leaves in the store, but I
couldn't find any directions for using fresh leaves. So, here I include real directions on how to
use fresh leaves.
* Usually gathered in early summer.
* Whether you are going to eat them fresh
or preserve them, select young
whole, medium
leaves (small = too thin; large or
sunburned = too tough)
with a good
light green color and no holes.
* Any type grape is OK. Get from unsprayed
plants; most sprays are toxic,
because
regulations don't count on anyone eating the leaves.
* About 1 1/2 pounds of fresh leaves are
the same as 1 jar of preserved leaves.
In
response to further questions on harvesting fresh leaves:
* Medium size is whatever that is for your
plants; too small and they tear up, too big and they are TOUGH AND CHEWY. Drying out/ droughty conditions also toughen
the leaves, they are tenderest
and best when the water supply to the plants has been steady and sufficient.
* Timing- best season is when they have
just reached medium size. The earlier in
the growing season the better. The
leaves thicken and toughen the longer they are in the sun, just like our old
folks here in
* Best time of day? My gardening friends tell me early in the day.
You have to think about protecting the
grapes when taking the leaves: look at the bunch and the way the leaves shade
it and try to take those that are not directly shading the cluster. You might want to have a major leaf-picking of
any eligible leaves just after you pick your grapes.
To use
or freeze fresh grape leaves
These
only last about six months in the freezer.
Blanch
loose, a dozen at a time, by placing in strong salted boiling brine, 1 cup salt
to 4 cups water. Bring water back to a
boil and then remove leaves immediately with a skimmer or pancake turner; and
then plunge the leaves immediately into cold/ice water. Drain, dry with paper towels or shake dry. Don't omit this, it is done to set the color
and also prevents enzyme action while freezing.
You can
do this blanching in the microwave. It
takes about 10 minutes at full power to bring the brine to a boil, then 2
minutes at full power for each dozen leaves. If you are reducing salt, you can do this in
plain boiling water.
Use
immediately, or stack in rolls of six, roll from the side and tie; wrap in
airtight plastic and freezer bags. Use
as soon as thawed because they don't keep too well after freezing.
To
preserve/can fresh leaves
This is
a multi-step process: making bundles of leaves, blanching, covering bundles
with brine, and processing the jars.
Prepare
bundles by stacking 6 to 20 blanched leaves of the same size. Put the shiny side UP. Line up the stem ends. Roll from the side. Tie bundles with real cotton string, not poly
or synthetic.
You can blanch
loose and then roll [see the frozen leaves blanching direction above], but if
you are going to preserve them, I think it is easier to make smallish bundles
and then blanch the bundles, no more than 4 at a time, for up to 3 minutes. Turn occasionally while boiling to blanch
evenly.
Pack
rolls tightly in sterilized canning jars, jars all the same size, gently
bending rolls if necessary to get the ends below the shoulder of the jar.
Make
brine: 1/4 cup kosher salt or pickling salt per quart of water, boil at least
five minutes, and keep it hot. Fill the
jars to cover all bundles with at least 1/2 inch of brine above the bundles. You need a little more than 1 cup brine per
jar.
Pour hot
brine to fill the jars. Run a stainless
steel table knife or spoon (not iron or steel) around the edge of each jar to
get out air bubbles.
Final
processing: Review canning process in any standard recipe book -- you need
jars, giant pot, etc. You have the
sterilized jars filled with rolled leaves covered with brine. Put on the sterilized two piece lids, keep
your fingers off the rim and inside of the jar and the lid. Place on a rack in a pot containing boiling
water to cover to 1/2 the depth of the jars. Fill with boiling water to 2" above the
jars, cover the pot, bring to a boil and boil hard 15 minutes for quarts, 10
minutes for pints. Cool the jars and
store in a cool dark place.
In the
olden days, they didn't do the final processing for any kind of brine pickles. Much quicker, but you'd lose some jars to molds.
Recipes
All
leaves require some initial steps
Whether
you use fresh or preserved, first blanch: plunge into boiling water, bring to
boil, plunge into cold/ ice water. Then you stuff and cook.
Notes on
Traditional Stuffings
* Always chop your onions, not grate or
puree; it improves the texture of the filling. The meat is raw.
* Tip on rice preparation: Soak the rice 10
minutes in hot water and drain, but don't precook. Or else, fry the raw rice in
olive oil for at least 5 minutes after you saute the
onion.
* If you don't like onion, use diced celery
or fennel instead.
Lenten /
vegetarian fillings, meat-free, have rice, onion, pine nuts, currants and are traditionally
served room temp or cold, with yogurt sauce.
Armenian
Yallanchee
Armenian
style stuffed grape leaves, called Yallanchee, are a cold appetizer of grape leaves wrapped
around seasoned rice, but without meat.
This is differs from the grape leaves of Greek cuisine that usually
include chopped meat.
This recipe
makes about 70 rolls:
2 large onions,
chopped fine (sometimes
I use a cup
of finely chopped
green onions and tops)
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup short
grain rice, pre-prepped, see note above
1 teaspoon allspice,
ground (or mix with cinnamon)
4-8 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill and/or parsley
salt and pepper to taste
sliced lemon between layers
optional additions may include:
1/4 cup pine nuts or cooked split
peas
1/4 cup currants, raisins or
chopped prunes
1/4 teaspoon ground saffron
Cypriot
or Greek style stuffed grape leaves
Cypriot
or Greek style stuffed grape leaves are made with rice, onion and ground lamb
or beef. They are traditionally served
warm or room temp with egg-lemon sauce.
This
recipe makes about 60 rolls:
1 medium onion,
chopped fine (sometimes I use a cup
of finely chopped
green onions and tops)
2 Tablespoons olive oil (for
sautéing onions)
1 1/2 pound
ground meat
1/2 cup
rice, pre-prepped,
see below
2-4 Tablespoons
fresh mint, finely chopped
2-4 Tablespoons
parsley, finely chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Persians,
Lebanese and some Greeks might add:
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Usual
process: sauté onion and green herbs very briefly, stir in soaked rice, raw
meat and other ingredients. Place each leaf shiny side DOWN, stuff and roll. Use between one teaspoon and one Tablespoon of
stuffing, depending on size of leaf.
Keep in mind that it expands slightly while cooking.
Stuffing
and Rolling
* Stuff with shiny side down.
* Trim the stem off -- it pokes a hole in
the roll while cooking. If the center
vein is very thick, some folks shave it down.
* Most traditional to roll leaf from stem
end to tip, after folding in the sides. But
you can roll side to side if the center vein is too thick, it makes center vein
easier to work around.
* Pack into cooking pan seam side down,
just touching. Two or three layers is fine. It is very
difficult to cook evenly if you make more than four layers of rolls.
Place a
small spoonful of prepared stuffing at the stem end of the leaf, roll about one
half turn. Fold in the two sides. Continue rolling to the tip of the leaf. The package should be firm, but not tight, as
the stuffing will expand while cooking.
Cooking
You can bake, steam or microwave these. Aluminum foil or pot may discolor (darken) the
leaves. For either method, line pan with
open extra leaves to prevent sticking. Lebanese
cooks sometimes use sliced tomatoes for this. Cover the top layer with other open leaves. You line the dish or pan with some torn
leaves, place the rolled leaves with the seam side down in layers, no more than
4 layers deep. Cover with a few more
loose leaves. Then put a heavy plate or
lid right on top of the rolls to keep them in place. Finally, pour the hot
water/broth and lemon juice or oil over the whole arrangement.
To Bake:
Cover tightly. Oven is preheated to 350°
F. Pour on your 2 to 4 cups broth/
water. Bake 30-60 minutes, depending on
size and whether the broth was hot when you started.
To Steam:
Put a small heavy plate over the top of the rolls to keep them in place. 60 rolls use about 2 to 4 cups broth or water.
Bring to simmer, lower heat, steam 40-60
minutes covered for usual small size. It
can take longer if the rolls are large or leaves tough. You can use the broth you drain off to make
your sauce.
To Microwave:
Make 2 dozen at a time. Prepare the
stuffing using the "sauté the rice" method. Put the rolls in a SINGLE layer just touching
each other in a 9x11 glass pan. Add 1
1/2 cups broth or water, cover tightly with microwave-safe plastic wrap. Microwave 10-12 minutes at
700 watts. If your oven is high
wattage (1000 watts), reduce the power level to 70%.
All
methods: cool in the broth, drain and serve.
They keep about a week in the
refrigerator. If you drain and chill
them, you may want to pour a little olive oil and lemon juice over all.
Seasoning
variations for the broth/ water: some cooks pour 1/4 -1/2 cup olive oil over
the full pan after the broth is added, and some folks add 1/4 cup lemon juice
to the liquid, or slices of lemon between the layers.
Recipes for Sauces
These
sauces contain eggs and dairy products. They should be refrigerated immediately
if not being served at once. They can be reheated.
Cucumber
and yogurt
2 cup plain
yogurt
1 large cucumber,
grated and drained
1-2 Tablespoons
fresh dill or mint, chopped
2-3 cloves
fresh crushed garlic are sometimes added.
Mix
together and let stand a few hours.
Egg and
lemon, Greek style
4 egg yolks, beaten till thick and lemony
4 Tablespoons fresh lemon
juice
2 Tablespoons hot pan
broth
Beat
yolks, beat in lemon juice, and then carefully beat in enough hot broth to
thicken slightly.
Egg and
lemon, Cypriot style
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons flour
1 1/2 cups
chicken broth or lamb
stock
1-2 Tablespoons
lemon juice
2 large eggs,
beaten
salt and pepper to taste
Make
just like a standard white sauce, mixing the eggs into the last half of the
broth before you add it.
Serving
traditions
Traditionally
served warm or room temp in portions of 3 to 5 small rolls with sauce for
appetizers. A glass of retsina is a pleasant
addition.
Storing
Refrigerate,
covered, with a little olive oil to keep them moist, for up to 5 days.
Source:
http://www.ellenskitchen.com/recipebox/dolmas.html
08/15/07